The Oregonian Portland, not waiting for Amazon, moves forward with Post Office plan By Anna Marum November 8, 2017 Even if Amazon chooses another city for its second headquarters, Portland has big plans for the Pearl District Post Office site – including affordable housing and living-wage jobs. The city's urban renewal agency, Prosper Portland, on Wednesday opened the door for developers to submit applications to craft a master plan for the 32 acres at the base of the Broadway Bridge. Officials anticipate redevelopment of the newly dubbed Broadway Corridor district would bring in more than $1 billion in investment. The request envisions a high-density, mixed-used neighborhood that would benefit from the nearby Amtrak train station and serve as a gateway to the city. It also comes less than a month after Portland included the site – along with several other downtown blocks – in its pitch for Amazon's second headquarters, a $5 billion project promising 50,000 jobs. Unlike some other cities, Portland offered no special incentives in its proposal, documents showed. Given its proximity to the retail giant's headquarters in Seattle, Portland is seen as a long-shot for Amazon's second home. Many said Portland didn't have much of a chance, given its proximity to Seattle. If Amazon doesn't choose the City of Roses, the company has prompted Portland to take a hard look at how it wants to grow. Prosper spokesman Shawn Uhlman said Wednesday's call for developers doesn't mean Portland is giving up on Amazon. "We need to move forward with a master plan process regardless of who the tenants may be," he said. If Amazon does choose Portland, he said, "we would just work to implement them into this master planning process as a significant tenant." Wednesday's request, first reported by the Portland Business Journal, called for a developer practiced in public-private partnerships, and one familiar with high-density, mixed-use and mixed-income projects. This map shows the blocks that compose the Broadway Corridor. According to the request, developable blocks of the Broadway Corridor owned by the city include the Post Office superblock site, a block under the Broadway Bridge and two more blocks on Broadway. Greyhound, which operates a bus station at Sixth and Hoyt, may downsize, freeing up more space. Prosper paid $88 million for the Post Office site last year. The Post Office will move to a new facility next to the airport. Portland negotiated to buy land for $34.7 million from Trammell Crow, which bought a former golf course in 2014 for just $6 million. The Broadway Corridor also encompasses Union Station, the Pacific Northwest College of Art, the future site of the Multnomah County Health Department headquarters and the Bud Clark Commons, which houses a homeless shelter and supportive housing. Prosper's plans also call for a park at Park and Glisan, extending the North Park Blocks. In a letter included in the request, Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler called for a bold and iconic design, and said the blocks represent a "rare and tremendous opportunity" to create a landmark development in the heart of the city. "I want Portlanders to continue to be able to live in a bikable and walkable neighborhood to position the Broadway Corridor as both a transportation hub and a gateway to the city," he wrote. Prosper chair Gustavo Cruz said in the request that the right developer would be able to deliver affordable housing, environmentally friendly structures and public spaces. "The Broadway Corridor will be a laboratory of inclusion and opportunity, changing Portland's downtown landscape in a way that touches residents from every neighborhood, income level and cultural community," he wrote. Prosper expects to select a developer in April and have a master plan for the Broadway Corridor by mid-2019. Prosper also is looking to recoup at least $40 million, the amount it owes the city for a loan it took out to buy the Post Office property.

Groups call on Portland City Council to end cooperation with FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force By Jim Ryan November 8, 2017 The ACLU of Oregon and more than 20 other groups on Wednesday called for the Portland City Council to end city cooperation with the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force, signaling the latest turn in a saga dating back two decades. Kimberly McCullough of the American Civil Liberties Union, speaking before the council, said concerns about the task force are intensified by the presidential administration's "utter disregard for civil rights and civil liberties" and "recent statements and actions" by the FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which she referred to as the task force's largest players. Portland began on-and-off involvement in the task force in 1997 and is currently involved. The City Council voted in 2015 to assign two officers to the task force, reversing Portland's outlier status nationally as the only big city at the time that didn't assign officers to participate on a full-time basis. A 2011 City Council vote had allowed "as-needed" involvement after the City Council had voted to cut ties in 2005. Neither Mayor Ted Wheeler nor any of the present city councilors had any immediate response to the appeal from McCullough and two others opposed to Portland's involvement in the task force. A Portland police spokesman said Wednesday evening that he was working on providing responses to Oregonian/OregonLive questions posed late that morning about the task force. The FBI describes its Joint Terrorism Task Forces as "small cells" of local investigators, analysts and other specialists from dozens of agencies. The agency said the task forces "provide one-stop shopping for information regarding terrorist activities" and that "they pool talents, skills, and knowledge from across the law enforcement and intelligence communities into a single team that responds together." The task forces operate out of 104 cities across the country and include about 4,000 members. Members of the task force in October arrested a Rock Creek man who's been accused of assault on a federal officer and using and carrying an explosive in the course of committing a felony. Federal agents initiated an investigation into the man, Jason Paul Schaefer, in late September amid concerns that he had been buying an explosive liquid called nitromethane, remotes used to set off fireworks and more than 100 electric matches. In written testimony addressed to the mayor and councilors, distributed to the media beforehand, McCullough described the relationship between the city and FBI as "problematic." She said the task force "has a long history of surveillance of lawful First Amendment activity and of other civil rights abuses" and said the task force works in secrecy and with little oversight. The groups call on the City Council to withdraw the pair of full-time Portland officers from the task force and cancel a memorandum of agreement with the federal agency. "This lack of transparency also makes it very difficult to know how and when rights violations involve Portland Police Bureau officers who are deputized as JTTF officers and who operate under the authority of the FBI," McCullough wrote. The written testimony referenced a letter submitted to the council and signed by 23 organizations, including the Albina Ministerial Alliance Coalition for Justice and Police Reform, Unite Oregon and the Oregon chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Lawyer Brandon Mayfield, who was wrongly accused by the FBI in 2004 of being linked to a train bombing in Madrid, also backs the effort and addressed the City Council on Wednesday. "Please quit targeting ethnic minorities and immigrants and do the right thing, the respectable thing, the safe thing, the reasonable thing and withdraw like our sister city, San Francisco, from the JTTF," he said.

Portland to spend $12 million surplus on police, homeless, roads and new positions By Jessica Floum November 8, 2017 The city of Portland has a $12 million surplus from last year's budget, and it plans to spend much of it to add to the city's police force, operate homeless shelters and complete infrastructure projects. The new spending, approved Wednesday, will be on top of the $516 million spending plan for 2017-18 that the City Council approved in May. In addition to adding temporary jobs to the police force to prepare for a wave of retirements, the council approved adding 66 other full-time jobs across the city's 27 bureaus. At least 50 percent of funds leftover from the beginning budget — $6 million — will go to major maintenance and infrastructure costs, as city rules require. About $5 million will go to a bridge replacement project on Northeast 42nd Avenue at Lombard Street. The Portland Communication Center and the Justice Center will each get $500,000 to ensure uninterrupted power. In April, a power outage at the Bureau of Emergency Communications blocked calls to 911 for a half an hour. Among the largest discretionary allocations approved Wednesday were $2 million for the Portland Police Bureau and $1.7 million for the Joint Office of Homeless services to add year- round and winter emergency shelters for homeless people. The council also approved $570,000 for increased security at City Hall. "The city continues to benefit from a strong economy, allowing us to make additional investments in urgent priorities," Mayor Ted Wheeler said. The city has benefited from surpluses each fall since 2013, said City Budget Officer Andrew Scott. Because the city sets a conservative budget every spring, there are often more opportunities for spending, referred to in city lingo as "the bump," come fall. Commissioner Dan Saltzman took issue with spending the additional $6 million outside of the normal budget proposal process. He criticized the lack of public involvement and questioned the lack of competitive process for programs collectively awarded $2.5 million. Those expenditures include $100,00 for an Age Friendly initiative championed by Commissioner Nick Fish, $6,000 in travel and registration costs for a participatory budgeting conference recommended by the mayor, $227,000 for a Lents stabilization project and $6,300 for the Office of Youth Violence and Prevention, an organization of particular interest to Saltzman. At Commissioner Chloe Eudaly's urging, the council approved giving $100,000 to the Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon via the Portland Development Commission, now known as Prosper Portland. "We're all guilty up here because we all have our little pet projects tucked into this," Saltzman said. "There has got to be a better way to make sure these appropriations are subject to more rigor than they are during the bump process." The commissioner cited spending for the budgeting conference as one he thinks needed more scrutiny. "Travel requests that I routinely deny as a commissioner in charge somehow work their way into a bump request," he said.

The Portland Tribune Portland Police Union: Halt Wapato sale, use it for Homeless By Nick Budnick November 8, 2017 County should let voters in 2018 consider unused jail as a shelter and services center, union says The Portland Police Association wants the county board to reject a proposed sale of the unused Wapato scheduled for Thursday and instead let voters decide on its future — calling it "wildly viable" solution to the city's homeless problem. County commissioners should craft a ballot measure letting voters decide whether "they want to use Wapato as community transitional housing and social service hub," wrote PPA President Daryl Turner in a bluntly worded open letter on Wednesday. The letter comes as the board is scheduled to vote Thursday morning on the proposed sale of Wapato to Marty Kehoe for use as a distribution center. The longtime real estate developer has offered $10.8 million for the political albatross. That's well above the $8.5 million appraised value of the property determined in 2014. And it would save the county an estimated $300,000 a year that it spends on upkeep on the never- opened jail, which has caused Chair Deborah Kafoury to make the sale of Wapato a priority. The police union, however, says a sale would close the door on a solution to Portland's worsening homeless problem. "The county has spent millions and millions on homeless issues and our politicians have failed us time and again with programs and plans that bring nominal results. It is time to try something different; invest in Wapato as a pilot program," Turner wrote. He noted that Kafoury has opposed using the jail for homeless services, noting it is well away from the downtown core where many homelesss services are located. "Kafoury and other opponents say that Wapato is not centrally located to infrastructure and social services, that public transit is inadequate, the facility looks too institutional, and zone and occupancy permit changes will be required," Turner wrote. "These are not insurmountable barriers and the arguments fall short of convincing when lives are on the line. The 155,400-square-foot jail sits on 18.24 acres of industrial land in the Rivergate Industrial Park. It cost $58 million to build. An analysis by the Portland Tribune shows the total cost to date is more than $90 million, including interest and maintenance payments, and could exceed $105 million by the time all the bonds are finally paid off in 2030. "Wapato is a 155,400-square-foot facility in 18.24 acres with a commercial kitchen, laundry, toilets, showers, dentist chairs, medical rooms, countless offices and training rooms, and 525 beds. It is a wildly viable, cost effective, and time efficient way to provide warm, clean beds and services to 525 people just to start," Turner wrote. "With the size and expanse of the property and opportunities to phase in more beds and relocate services, Portland could essentially eliminate the homeless crisis and offer social services and housing for all who need it." He asks the board to "create a 2018 ballot measure asking the voters of Multnomah County if they want to use Wapato as community transitional housing and social service hub. "Connecting people with the resources and services they need is a big part of our job as police officers and a growing responsibility with our continued staffing crisis at the Bureau. We are most often the first responders for mental health crises, homelessness, and livability issues. Having a central social service hub for these issues gives us tools to build a stronger community; it is a worthy investment," Turner wrote. "Our elected officials take pride in the progressive reputation of our community yet are resigned to idea that Wapato has failed and must be abandoned. We challenge our leaders to think outside the box and see the opportunity to turn Wapato into a success story, creating value and services that save lives." Denis Theriault, a spokesman for the joint city county Joint Office of Homeless Services, responded to Turner's statement with one of his own: "The number of people accessing at least a night of shelter has more than doubled in three years, largely because we now have double the number of year-round publicly funded beds than we did then, and also because we stepped up housing placements to keep people from stalling in shelters once they landed there. "We're now helping 2,000 more people a year into housing over the course of a year than we did three years ago. And it's the same 2,000/person/year improvement in the number of people kept out of homelessness, through help paying their rent or paying utility bills and other similar prevention programs." "Did the overall number of people counted as homeless still go up? Sure did. But not as high as in other West Coast cities where people can't afford their rent. And for the first time we counted more people in shelter than outside this year. Our unsheltered count actually went down 11.6 percent, though it's not as if 1,668 people still outside is cause for celebration." What sparked the union's interest? Contacted by the Tribune, Turner said, "When people are camped out, whether it's in tents or in motor homes, and you have to move them, where are they going to go? It's frustrating to us because we're just moving the problem around, we're not solving the problem. It takes away from police resources, it frustrates the community ... It's not serving the people who just need a place to stay." The full letter appears below: November 8, 2017 Our Tax Dollars NOT at Work As the cold weather sets in, it is incumbent on our politicians and city leaders to acknowledge that our public policy is failing and the homeless population in our community is paying the highest price. The rank and file officers of the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) see the basic shelter and mental health service needs everyday as residents, business owners, and the homeless of our city struggle for solutions that our elected officials have promised year after year. From 2007 to 2017, Homelessness in Multnomah County has increased by 6% The number of homeless nationally has dropped 15% in the last 10 years and in Oregon there are now 20% fewer people without shelter on any given night; yet homelessness in Multnomah County has increased over 6% in the same time period. If you listen to bureaucracy, there is a lot of talk about the improvements, the record number of housing placements, and greater shelter access but we still have 4,177 homeless people in our community and there are still children sleeping outside tonight. Proposed Wapato Sale Means More Than $48 Million Loss to Taxpayers Last week, Multnomah County Chair Deborah Kafoury signed a letter of intent with Marty Kehoe of Kehoe Northwest Properties to purchase the beleaguered Wapato Facility. Built as a minimum-security detention center in 2004 and costing the taxpayers $58.4 million, the 525-bed facility has never been used outside a handful of movie productions and occasional PPB training; it has proven to be an embarrassing county project. As the county and city continue to grapple with livability issues that have a far-reaching impact on all those who live, work, and recreate in Portland, Kafoury is leading the charge to sell Wapato for $8-10 million dollars; forcing the taxpayers to take an estimated 83% loss on its investment. Why Not Wapato as Transitional Housing? In recent years, many have suggested that Wapato could be a perfect short and long-term option to curb Portland's homeless crisis becoming a hub for social services and providing transitional housing. Yet, County Chair Kafoury remains strongly opposed to the idea, causing division even amongst the commissioners while homeless shelter operators, homeless advocates, and residents have voiced support for the endeavor. Imagine a community hub with secure and safe access to basic needs, medical and mental health services, addiction counseling, job training, family advocacy, and transitional housing with the resources available to move the homeless from the streets to permanent jobs and housing. Kafoury and other opponents say that Wapato is not centrally located to infrastructure and social services, that public transit is inadequate, the facility lookstoo institutional, and zone and occupancy permit changes will be required. These are not insurmountable barriers and the arguments fall short of convincing when lives are on the line. Wapato is a 155,400-square-foot facility in 18.24 acres with a commercial kitchen, laundry, toilets, showers, dentist chairs, medical rooms, countless offices and training rooms, and 525 beds. It is a wildly viable, cost effective, and time efficient way to provide warm, clean beds and services to 525 people just to start. With the size and expanse of the property and opportunities to phase in more beds and relocate services, Portland could essentially eliminate the homeless crisis and offer social services and housing for all who need it. What does it cost us? According to the county's own facility analysis, Wapato could be minimally prepared for use as a shelter at a start up cost of $950K with an ongoing maintenance cost of $140K per month. The financial impact of the chronically homeless is staggering. Studies have found that each chronically homeless person costs taxpayers $30,000 to $50,000 per year. With 30% (1,253) of our homeless categorized as chronic, we are looking at a $37 - $62 MILLION in public resources each year. The county has spent millions and millions on homeless issues and our politicians have failed us time and again with programs and plans that bring nominal results. It is time to try something different; invest in Wapato as a pilot program. Let Voters Decide We understand County Chair Kafoury's desire to "end the debacle" that is Wapato and move on. But, there is more we can do and we cannot afford to be luxurious with our taxpayer dollars. There is too much at stake to let the county make this costly decision without formal public input in regards to Wapato, thus the Portland Police Association is requesting the following of the Multnomah County Council:  Rescind the letter of intent with Kehoe Northwest Properties for the sale of Wapato, and  Create a 2018 ballot measure asking the voters of Multnomah County if they want to use Wapato as community transitional housing and social service hub. Connecting people with the resources and services they need is a big part of our job as police officers and a growing responsibility with our continued staffing crisis at the Bureau. We are most often the first responders for mental health crises, homelessness, and livability issues. Having a central social service hub for these issues gives us tools to build a stronger community; it is a worthy investment. Our elected officials take pride in the progressive reputation of our community yet are resigned to idea that Wapato has failed and must be abandoned. We challenge our leaders to think outside the box and see the opportunity to turn Wapato into a success story, creating value and services that save lives. Daryl Turner, President Portland Police Association

Council Approves Conflict Policy for Advisory Committees By Jim Redden November 8, 2017 Members can still discuss and vote on issues with conflicts after they have declared them. The City Council unanimously approved a new policy requiring members of advisory committees to formally declare if they, family members or their employers could financially benefit from recommendations they are considering on Wednesday. The council considered but did not prohibit those with such conflicts from voting or even discussion recommendation that could produce such benefits, deciding that disclosing them was sufficient. Commissioner Nick Fish said the policy was long overdue and will help ensure transparency on future council decisions. The policy was proposed by commissioners Nick Fish, Chloe Eudaly and Amanda Fritz after some members of a downtown advisory planning committee were accused of not disclosing their ownership interests in properties covered by the proposed plan, which was subsequently review and adopted by the Planning and Sustainability Commission and the City Council. After receiving a complaint, the City Ombudman ruled all such conflicts should have been formally declared under state conflict of interest laws. Some committee members complained they had declared their conflicts and were not given a chance to defend themselves. An amendment introduced by Eudlay and approved by the council says that any potential or actual conflict noted by staff will be included in the recommendation report provided to city council or other final decision making body. An amendment introduced by Fish and approved by the council says that if a committee member does not disclose a conflict that is later discovered, the director of the bureau overseeing the committee must be notified. To read a previous Portland Tribune story on the issue, go to portlandtribune.com/pt/9- news/373270-257298-conflicts-of-interest-snag-central-city-plan.

City Sets up Lottery for 2018 Park Wedding Permits By Pamplin Media Group November 8, 2017 Portland Building renovations forced parks officials to end the annual wait-in-line-for- many-hours-outside-the-permit center process for future brides and grooms that usually greeted the first business day of the new year. Thinking about getting married next year in a Portland park? City officials have some good news and some bad news for you. The good news: You won't have to wait in line during cold January weather to get a permit. The bad news: You will have to jump into a lottery beginning in mid-November for the park wedding permits. Portland Parks & Recreation officials said Wednesday, Nov. 8, that people who want to get permits for 2018 weddings in one of the city's 200 parks, gardens and natural settings won't be able to reserve space on a first-come, first-served basis. Starting this month, reservations will be determined by a lottery. Blame it on Portland Building renovations, say parks officials. Plans to do $195 million in renovation and seismic upgrades next year on the 35-year-old city office building have put a crimp in the annual wait-in-line-for-many-hours-outside-the-permit center process for future brides and grooms that usually greeted the first business day of the new year. People who wanted permits to have weddings in city parks sometimes lined up overnight in cold early January weather outside to be first in the first-floor Permit Center. The city Permit Center, like other Portland Building tenants, will move out by the end of this year. It's new offices, on the sixth floor of 111 S.W. Columbia St., are too small to accommodate the annual early January wedding permit crush, so Portland Parks & Recreation decided to change to a lottery system. According to parks officials, starting at 8 a.m. Monday, Nov. 13, the parks bureau will take wedding reservation requests and enter them in a 2018 lottery. Applicants can submit reservation requests online at www.PortlandParks.org, or by calling 503-823-2525 and working with a customer service representative. The process includes a $110 non-refundable application and processing fee to submit a request. The lottery application process ends at 5 p.m. Dec. 14. Lucky couples' applications will be selected starting at 10 a.m. Dec. 15. Couples who don't want to go through the lottery can still submit their permit requests starting at 8 a.m. Jan. 2, 2018, the first business day of the new year, but lottery winners will have already reserved their spots, narrowing choices for stragglers, according to parks officials.

Tiny-House Advocates Honored with Annual Spirit of Portland Awards By Lyndsey Hewitt November 8, 2017 Neighborhood homeless advocates and activists among list of award winners, to be honored at Nov. 14 ceremony. The 2017 Spirit of Portland Award recipients include a handful of neighborhood activists and others who have tackled the tough challenge of services and help for homeless people. This is the 33rd year of the awards, which honor those in the community who have contributed in a variety of ways. It culminates in a ceremony from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 14, at the IRCO (Immigrant and Refugee Community Center), 10301 N.E. Glisan St. "This annual awards ceremony formally recognizes and honors some of Portland's most active and engaged community members for their outstanding contributions and hard work in the arts & culture, environmental, equity, and social justice issues. This year also we are recognizing those Standing Up for Love against Hate," Commissioner Chloe Eudaly said in a news release. Winning the top award of Community Leader(s) of the Year was Terrance Moses, Lisha Shrestha, and Surya Joshi. Moses is a 51-year-old retired military veteran living in North Portland's Kenton neighborhood who has been helping with operations at the tiny-home village for homeless women. There were 14 people living there but recently one woman left after finding permanent housing. He's helped with insulating the pods ahead of winter as well as building other needed structures on the site, including a whole new office for a site manager. He's built needed handrails, closed up an open common area so it can be used during winter and an addition for the women to have consultations with their case managers. Going down there at least once a day every day for several hours depending on what needs done, Moses gets donations from the community to complete the projects, including funds from Catholic Charities, which manages the site, and Lowes, which donates material. "I don't do it for any kind of accolade or award, but I will accept it," he said. "I do it because I have a passion for people and I always want to be mindful of that." Moses previously won a Good Neighbor Award last year by www.Nextdoor.com, a social network where people can connect by their specific neighborhood. Also winning an award especially for work on neighborhood homeless issues was Jennifer Young of the Lents Neighborhood Association. Her Spirit Award came from Commissioner Dan Saltzman, who oversees the Portland Bureau of Transportation. In the spring, Young helped organize a town hall where commissioners heard how the southeast neighborhood had been affected by homeless camps and RVs. She recently testified in front of city council when they passed an ordinance banning the sale of derelict RVs. Winners Outstanding Individual and Organization Leadership Awards: Community Leader of the Year: Terrance Moses, Lisha Shrestha, and Surya Joshi Young Leader of the Year: Alisha Zhao Elder Leader of the Year: Grace G.M. Eagle Reed City Employee of the Year: Rick Best Community Group/Organization of the Year: Trauma Intervention Program (T.I.P.) Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Award: Rebekah Albert Equity in Practice Partnership of the Year: EPNO Mobile Playgrounds Team Access and Disability Justice Award: Cascade AIDS Project (CAP) Sandy Diedrich Environmental Stewardship of the Year: Nestor Campos Individual and Organization Awards from Council Mayor Ted Wheeler: Rick Nitti and Unite Oregon Commissioner Chloe Eudaly: Kathleen Saadat and The Raging Grannies Commissioner Amanda Fritz: Katrina Holland and Good in the Hood Commissioner Nick Fish: Wajdi Said and Rania Ayoub (Muslim Education Trust) and Sexual & Gender Minority Youth Resource Center (SMYRC) Commissioner Dan Saltzman: Jennifer Young (Lents Neighborhood Association) and Oregon State Fire Marshall's Incident Management Team & Interagency groups deployed to contain and assist with the Eagle Creek Fire.

The Portland Mercury The Top Protest Cop Defends Rough Policing Tactics By Doug Brown November 8, 2017 As the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) rakes in criticism from civil rights groups and professional monitors over its handling of protests, the captain in charge of the bureau’s response to such events is doubling down on the controversial tactics. “I know Portland’s got a reputation: 'Oh, Portland police this and that,’” PPB Captain Larry Graham said during a rant at a police oversight meeting last week. “[But] nationally, they’ve looked at us and they’ve asked us to do national training for national law enforcement. They’re pretty impressed about how we’re able to adapt and change.” Graham was at the meeting to defend a specific event: his riot gear-clad cops’ response to a protest over a police union contract last October, during which some officers pushed activists down the steps of City Hall and set off pepper spray before arresting 10 people. But he made clear he’s proud of the bureau’s handling of protests in general. Since last October, cops in body armor and masks have regularly responded to protests by setting off less-lethal grenades and tear gas, pepper-spraying activists, and slamming people to the ground. Vans and buses are called to haul protesters to jail for charges that often don’t stick. Variations on this theme played out at protests immediately after Donald Trump was elected, on Inauguration Day, President’s Day, May Day, and more. Curious about Graham’s claim, the Mercury inquired into which national agencies have asked the PPB for protest-policing training. He may be inflating a bit. PPB spokesman Sergeant Chris Burley says Graham was referring to the state’s Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST), where the PPB “has worked with local law enforcement agencies to create a training model for crowd management.” Burley directed further questions to the DPSST, which didn’t elaborate on the PPB’s role in training other agencies for protest policing. Burley also said a Portland police lieutenant, Ryan Lee, is on a National Institute of Justice panel that looks at “crowd management best practices.” Graham’s boasts about the bureau’s protest policing prowess came at last Wednesday’s meeting of the Citizen Review Committee (CRC), which hears appeals from people who’ve filed complaints against the police. Graham was defending the bureau’s decision to clear several officers of five complaints made by an activist after the chaotic October 12, 2016 protest. On that day, activists disrupted a Portland City Council meeting to voice their displeasure with a new police union contract negotiated under then-Mayor Charlie Hales. Graham, clearly agitated by criticism of PPB tactics, gushed at one point for more than six minutes about how his officers handled themselves that day in the face of “taunts.” An independent watchdog group reached different conclusions. In a scathing report released last month, a group of Chicago academics being paid to monitor the city’s settlement agreement with the US Department of Justice used the October protest as evidence that police weren’t sufficiently de-escalating tense events. “We found at least one instance where an officer appears to use force against a person who ‘express[ed] verbal discontent with [the] officer but [did] not otherwise pose a threat to officers or others,’” the report says. Specifically, it pointed to an incident where cops pepper-sprayed local activist Jessie Sponberg and shoved him down a small flight of stairs as he was filming the protest. “We believe the force was unreasonable,” the report concludes, suggesting the officer violated bureau policy. “The strength of the push does not appear to correlate with the officers’ stated objective.” But in front of the CRC, Graham, the incident commander that day, called the protesters a “mob” that intentionally provoked the police, and said he was “proud” of how they responded. (The CRC wasn’t specifically reviewing the Sponberg incident, but Graham was talking about the event as a whole.) “Everybody here’s like, ‘Oh, police are the bad guys,’” Graham told the volunteer board. “When you watch the video, we’re basically getting taunted.” Graham suggested his officers reacted to the “taunts” more calmly than he would have. “I’ll be honest with you, I don’t know how good I would do after that mob provoking me like that,” he said. “I’m proud of all of them and how they were holding their cool.” Graham also acknowledged what many protesters have suspected: The October 2016 event is when police started seriously cracking down on protests that would become commonplace in the city in the Trump era. “Before... we let people take the streets, take to the bridges, take to the freeway, start burning things,” he said. “This is about the turning point where we said, ‘You know, this is enough.’ We have to have rules. If you want to protest, there’s laws. If you want to protest, you need a permit.” (Graham’s recollection is somewhat fuzzy. Following Trump’s election in November, police allowed marchers to take to Interstate 5. They also had a notably relaxed presence prior to rioting that damaged several businesses in the Pearl District.) The heavy-handed approach adopted recently by the PPB has led the ACLU of Oregon to argue police are violating the constitution with the crackdowns and permit requirements. “It is clear that responding to peaceful protests with militarized and excessive force puts both the public and police officers in harm’s way, but it also risks the very fabric of our democracy,” the civil rights group wrote in January. “This kind of policing shuts down First Amendment activity.” It was just one of many statements the ACLU of Oregon has released following protests in the city. But if Graham’s speech last week is any indication, that message and others haven’t been heard at police headquarters. “I’m really proud of my officers,” Graham said.

There's a New Call for Portland to Sever Ties With a Federal Terrorism Task Force By Dirk VanderHart November 8, 2017 If civil liberties advocates get their way, Portland's latest city council might be the third in a row to consider the city's involvement with federal anti-terror investigations. In a call that's become familiar in the last 10 years, a group of organizations including the ACLU of Oregon, Portland Copwatch, the National Lawyers' Guild, and the Council on American- Islamic Relations of Oregon, launched a campaign today to convince the city to cease participation in the FBI-led Joint Terrorism Task Force. The groups raise long-held concerns that the JTTF ropes local cops into surveillance efforts that are secretive and might be problematic. But they're also using the administration of Donald Trump—specifically, its targeting of Muslim immigrants and other communities—as leverage to try to convince Portland to wash its hands of the matter. "President Trump has made it clear he plans to target people based on their religion (Muslims), national origin (immigrants), and political beliefs (protesters), not to mention the media and others," reads a letter signed by 24 organizations and individuals, and submitted to Portland City Council today. Portland currently dedicates two officers to the JTTF, and has a memorandum of understanding with the federal government sealing the deal. The officers who participate in the taskforce are given security clearance higher than that of Police Chief Danielle Outlaw or Mayor Ted Wheeler, and the activities of the JTTF are closely guarded secrets. (Former Mayor Charlie Hales applied for secret clearance, but was denied in 2014. Wheeler hasn't applied his office says, adding "the Mayor receives regular updates during briefings, particularly with regard to drug trafficking and child sex trafficking.") The FBI calls its 104 JTTFs "our nation’s front line on terrorism: small cells of highly trained, locally based, passionately committed investigators, analysts, linguists, SWAT experts, and other specialists from dozens of U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies." But civil liberties groups have long bristled at secret activities they believe might easily cross the line. The latest campaign suggests JTTF involvement could spur local cops to break state laws, including a statute that prevents local law enforcement from surveilling groups not suspected of crimes, anti-profiling legislation, and Oregon's 30-year-old sanctuary law. "Because it operates under a veil of secrecy with very little oversight, the true extent of rights violations committed by the JTTF is unclear," Kimberly McCullough, policy director for the ACLU of Oregon, said in a prepared statement. "This lack of transparency also makes it very difficult to know how and when rights violations involve Portland Police Bureau officers." The city has a rollercoaster relationship with the JTTF. In 2005, under the leadership of then- Mayor Tom Potter, the city severed ties with the taskforce, partly amid civil liberties concerns (Commissioner Dan Saltzman was the lone vote against that move). Then in November 2010, the FBI announced a young Muslim man had tried to blow up Portland's Christmas tree lighting ceremony (after having his hand held by the FBI throughout the "plot"). Immediately afterward, Saltzman began agitating for Portland to re-join the JTTF, and in April 2011 the city voted to partially reunite with the group. In 2015, on the heels of terror attacks in cities around the globe, City Council voted to fully re- join the JTTF. It was a 3-2 decision, in which Hales cast the decisive vote (current commissioners Fish and Saltzman joined him in support, current Commissioner Amanda Fritz voted against along with former Commissioner Steve Novick). Portland's not the only city that's had heartburn about the JTTF. Earlier this year, San Francisco police pulled out the their local task force, spurring dire warnings from federal officials in the process. There's not yet any indication the current council, which includes a new mayor in Wheeler and a new commissioner, Chloe Eudaly, wants to take up the debate again. The groups launching the latest campaign said today they hadn't asked current councilmembers about the matter. Among supporters for severing JTTF ties is Brandon Mayfield, a local attorney who was improperly surveilled and imprisoned by the FBI in 2004. He said today that with the JTTF, the federal government is asking local officers to participate in a "witch hunt." Also speaking today: Kayse Jama, executive director of Unite Oregon and a candidate for state senate, and Seemab Hussaini of CAIR-Oregon. "No human being is illegal," Husseini said this morning, "however if you're an american Muslim you might feel like you are."

Hall Monitor: Investigate Sam Adams By Dirk VanderHart November 8, 2017 New Allegations Against the Former Mayor Need to Be Investigated—No Matter What YOU HAD to wonder, given the ubiquity of harassment and assault, when the #MeToo movement would touch Portland City Hall. It finally hit last Thursday, in a wide-ranging six-page complaint sent by Cevero Gonzalez, a former staffer to ex-mayor Sam Adams. Gonzalez, who is gay, alleged sexual harassment. He said Adams persistently quizzed him about his love life and whether he liked men circumcised. He further claimed the former mayor tried to bring him to downtown strip club Silverado, and insisted he scout gay bars and bathhouses at Adams’ travel destinations. Other claims were just as concerning. Gonzalez wrote he felt pressured by Adams’ chief of staff, Tom Miller, to keep his concerns about the behavior quiet, lest he be forced out of his city job. “I accepted Sam’s behavior and the rationales provided by my supervisors because when I complained I was told to be quiet,” Gonzalez wrote in the complaint, first reported by Willamette Week. “When I persisted I was told I could lose my job.” Both Adams and Miller have denied the accusations. Gonzalez has asked that the city investigate the claims, and try to corroborate the behaviors he described with other city employees. It’s explosive, worrisome stuff. And it’s possible it’ll fizzle out here. In response to Gonzalez’s complaint, city attorneys and HR officials are trying to answer a question: Can the city do anything? “Our normal course of action would be to have the Bureau of Human Resources conduct an investigation to determine if any violations of law or policy have occurred that merit discipline or that require other action to protect a City employee from harassment or discrimination,” says City Attorney Tracy Reeve. “In this instance, however, the allegations have been made against a person who is no longer affiliated with the City by a person who is no longer employed by the City.” Seen from that vantage point, it’s a conundrum. Adams hasn’t been mayor for five years. If he’d been another type of official—say a bureau director—it’s possible there’d be remnants of the bureaucracy he oversaw in place to investigate. But mayor’s offices don’t work like that. Even the vestiges of Adams’ administration who stayed on to work for Charlie Hales (Gonzalez among them) are nowhere to be found on Mayor Ted Wheeler’s staff, though some Adams staffers do still work elsewhere in the city. Adams, who’s said he’d welcome an investigation, is probably untouchable from a city standpoint. But who cares? If even a portion of the allegations are true, Portland’s former executive acted with shocking recklessness and utter disregard for one of his employees. What’s more, his staff might have enabled and abetted that activity. The city owes it to the public to try to figure out what truth exists in Gonzalez’s statement. And if officials do turn up evidence supporting his claims, they need to figure out what lapses—in training, in oversight, in the complaint process, in whatever—exist that could have allowed this to occur. The emergence of #MeToo has been ugly and painful and, unfortunately, shocking to many people (myself included). It’s too important a moment for inaction.

The Skanner Portland's Water Exceeds Limits on Lead By The Skanner News November 8, 2017 The Portland Water Bureau recently released a report from its twice-a-year testing for lead in water at 134 high-risk homes – and the results have raised eyebrows. The figures showed that 18 (or 13 percent) of these homes – known to have lead solder in their plumbing – had lead-in-water levels that exceed the federal limits. Test results showed that the lead levels were 17 parts per billion, over the limit of 15 parts per billion. If more than 10 percent of high-risk homes exceed the state limit, the water bureau must notify the public with strategies to lower levels. Lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant people and children six years and younger. In Portland, home plumbing such as faucets or lead-based solder can contain lead, which is then released into water through corrosive action of water passing through pipes. The city receives its water through the Bull Run watershed which, according to the water bureau, treats drinking water by raising its pH level to make it less corrosive. October’s testing is the third time in five years that the city has surpassed federal limits on lead in water. “Ideally, all of our customers' household plumbing fixtures would be lead-free, but they aren't,” said Portland Water Bureau director Michael Stuhr in a statement. “This is why we are making improvements to our system to further reduce the potential for lead at our customers' taps.” The results prompted the Portland City Council to authorize the water bureau’s corrosion control treatment – to be in place by spring 2022 – to help curb the levels of lead in drinking water. The Portland Water Bureau and regional providers recommend the following easy steps that customers can take to reduce exposure to lead in water: Run water to flush the lead out. If the water has not been used for several hours, run each tap for 30 seconds to two minutes or until it becomes colder before drinking or cooking. This simple step can reduce lead in water up to 90 percent or more. Use cold, fresh water for cooking and preparing baby formula. Do not cook with or drink water from the hot water tap; lead dissolves more easily into hot water. Do not use water from the hot water tap to make baby formula. Do not boil water to remove lead. Boiling water will not reduce lead. Test children for lead. Ask a physician or call the LeadLine to find out how to have aa child tested for lead. A blood lead level test is the only way to know if a child is being exposed to lead. Test your water for lead. Call the LeadLine at 503-988-4000 to find out how to get a FREE lead- in-water test. Consider using a filter. Check whether it reduces lead -- not all filters do. Be sure to maintain and replace a filter device in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions to protect water quality. Contact NSF International at 800-NSF-8010 or www.nsf.org for information on performance standards for water filters. Regularly clean the faucet aerator. Particles containing lead from solder or household plumbing can become trapped in faucet aerators. Regularly cleaning every few months will remove these particles and reduce the exposure to lead. Consider buying low-lead fixtures. As of 2014, all pipes, fittings and fixtures are required to contain less than 0.25 percent lead. When buying new fixtures, consumers should seek out those with the lowest lead content.

OPB Portland Council Approves New Spending On Transportation, Police and Homeless Services By Amelia Templeton November 8, 2017 Portland’s city council has approved close to $12 million in new one-time spending, because the city has more cash on hand than it projected when the council set the budget for the year. In years like this when the local economy is growing, the council typically gets a little more money to work with in the fall. Most of the one-time funding is going to a few big-ticket items. The council has adopted a policy of investing at least half of its fall surplus dollars in infrastructure and maintenance projects. This budget cycle, that infrastructure spending includes $4.9 million for the Portland Bureau of Transportation to replace an overpass in North Portland at 42nd Avenue and Lombard. The council also set aside $1 million for new emergency power supply systems for the city’s 911 call center and Justice Center. The council split the remaining $5.9 million in one-time spending between dozens of different programs. The Joint Office of Homeless Services is getting $1.7 million to spend on permanent shelter space, emergency winter shelter operations and an additional annual point in time homelessness count. Most controversially, $2 million in a city contingency fund is being earmarked for the Portland Police Bureau. That’s enough to fund 20 patrol officer positions, which the bureau says it may need to start hiring soon to help fill vacancies as officers are projected to retire over the next five years. The budget proposal also initially included $346,513 to fund a deputy police chief position and an administrative support staff person at the police bureau, positions requested by new chief Danielle Outlaw. But council members withdrew their support for that request in response to objections from the public, and said Outlaw would have to find money for that position from within the Police Bureau’s existing budget. Commissioner Amanda Fritz said while the council was unwilling to allocate new funding for the deputy chief position, she still believes it is necessary. “I do support Chief Outlaw having the right to have somebody at her right hand, who she knows, and she knows has her back. And that doesn’t happen at the expense of demoting one of the assistant chiefs,” Fritz said. Dozens of other city programs received smaller amounts of money. Commissioner Dan Saltzman said the council was guilty of spending the windfall on pet projects. “This is not how it should be,” Saltzman said. “I’m as guilty as everyone else up here, but there’s got to be a better way to make sure that these appropriations are subject to more rigor than they are in the bump process.” In spite of his objections, Saltzman voted with the rest of the council, and they unanimously approved the spending plan.